A Day in Brugge

Saturday, March 29, 2003

After 3 months of being in Belgium, we were finally able to get to Brugge. Nothing like having visitors to get us out to see the sites! In this case, it was Kevin's parents, Garry and Pat, who inspired us to get to Brugge.

Our first stop was the t'Zand market which was bustling on this Saturday morning. Laura's favorite booth was the Scouts' truffle sales. And we thought Girl Scout cookies were good - this beats all that!

Brugge is a beautifully preserved medieval town. It is definitely a must-see for anyone in Belgium, but it is also definitely a tourist town. This is not real life. Brugge is full of adoreable architecture, interesting churches, museums (which we didn't go to), cute little canals, and zillions of lace and chocolate shops. It is a perfect place to just wander. Which means, it's pretty "boring" for kids. Will and Ellen suffered through it without making the rest of us too miserable. Lunch helped their moods improve.

Our next stop was the Markt, or Grand-Place. Above right you see our group looking at the old guildhalls in the shadow of the bellfry. We met a young couple from Denver here. Then we walked to the Burg. The Basiliek van het Heilig Bloed is located here. This church (on the left with Pat and Garry), includes a 12th century Romanesque lower chapel and an upper chapel that houses a reliquary said to contain the Holy Blood of Christ, brought here by a crusader. Right. After a delightful lunch on a patio, we took a boat ride on the canal. It was a great way to see the city, but we had a hard time understanding the commentator's English, so we wish we'd been able to learn more. The kids liked the boat ride.

Next we headed for the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk, a Gothic church that houses Michelangelo's white marble Madonna and Child. On the way to the church we stopped to watch this Flemish lady making lace.

The quickest way back to our parking place was down some very cute streets, with a stop at the Begijnhof, otherwise known as the "Beguine Convent of the Vine." (Anyone who knows the Beguins of Willow Creek - maybe this is where their name comes from?) Anyhow, this was a great time to visit the convent because the daffodils were in full bloom. This Beguinage (French for Begijnhof) was established in 1245 by Margaret, Countess of Constantinople, to build a community of women, many of whom were widows of Crusaders and unmarried women (war results in a shortage of men!) There are many different descriptions of their way of life, but it seems that this was a way for them to retain their family's finances (after the men had been killed in battle) and provide security for each other. Some Begijnhofs supported themselves by making lace. The Begijnhofs are usually a garden and church encircled by a cluster of cottages and surrounded by a protective wall.

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